This Hindi movie is a pretty straightforward slice-of-life story that tries to give a modern look at what it's like to be a single, professional gay man. It dives into how he understands who he is, the chances he missed out on, and the personal choices he’s made along the way. The director used three parallel timelines to tell the story, which honestly didn't make much sense to me. While the core idea was actually pretty interesting, I really feel like this would have worked way better as a short film considering the point it was trying to make. Still, it wasn't a bad watch. The plot centers on Rachit, a city professional, and his friend Shikhar as they hang out for an evening. Rachit is a polished, urban guy, while Shikhar has more of a "small-town" rustic vibe, and you can really see the contrast between them when they talk. As the night goes on, Rachit starts thinking back to some old memories from a long time ago. He remembers being an intern after college in ...
Growing up in 70s in New Zealand, homosexuality was generally viewed as an aberration. But still mostly men found ways to find a sexual partner. And even in those less tolerant days, there were people who had happy stories to share. As Paul moved from NZ to London to film making to multiple trips around the world, he recounts and even tracks some of these men to give interviews for this documentary. While on the surface it’s a highly personal tale of one man’s liaisons, in the course of the telling, the tale encompasses profound societal and legal changes from the 1970s to the present day, and how quickly that history fades if we don’t keep the memory alive. The interviews are interesting individually, and are edited together in a narrative that holds your attention through to the end.
A competently made and fun documentary that struggles somewhat to find its focus. A much as the interviews were fun and personal, I was able to enjoy it and find a personal connection. There were years when I used to keep a list of men that I was hooking up with, so I got a little bot of chuckle myself seeing a documentary like this. Through interviews we hear stories about religion, AIDS, clubs, partying, sex, relationship, love, monogamy, pretty much everything. I would recommend this just as a harmless documentary trying to bring a spunk with a general exploration of gay history since the 70s, the film struggles to quite stick the landing and live up to the genuinely moving material it's working with. (6/10)
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